The invention relates to an endoscopic instrument having a shank which is bendable in at least one section and having an endoscope head which forms the distal end of the shank and in which the distal-side interfaces of the instrument are arranged.
Apart from endoscopic instruments with rigid shanks, instruments with flexible shanks are also known which may be deflected, for example via pull cables. The mechanics for deflecting or bending the shank, which are provided in these instruments, take up a certain cross-sectional area of the shank, so that the usable lumen in the inside of the shank is limited. Moreover, only limited degrees of freedom may be realized on deflection with such shanks.
Moreover, endoscopes are known which comprise electrically actuated actuators in the shank, in order to deflect the shank. Such an instrument is known, for example, from European patent application publication EP 1 884 185 A1. These instruments, however, are relatively complicated to assemble, since they require a multitude of individual parts and electrical connections in the inside.